Jae Weong Seo
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- This is a Korean name; the family name is Seo.
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| Kia Tigers — No. 40 | |
| Starting Pitcher | |
| Born: May 24, 1977 | |
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| July 21, 2002 for the New York Mets | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through April 4, 2007) |
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| Win-Loss | 25-36 |
| Earned Run Average | 4.27 |
| Strikeouts | 312 |
| Teams | |
| Korean name | ||||||||
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Jae Weong Seo (born May 24, 1977 in Kwangju, South Korea), usually referred to as simply Jae Seo and pronounced "Jay So", is a Major League Baseball starting pitcher who most recently played for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Seo currently pitches in the Korean Baseball League.
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[edit] Career
Seo attended Inha University in Incheon, South Korea where he led his team to the Korean collegiate championship in 1997.
In 1998, Seo was signed as a free agent by the New York Mets. After an excellent first year of professional play, Seo underwent reconstructive surgery on his elbow in 1999. He did not pitch again until 2001. On July 21, 2002, Seo made his major league debut with a scoreless inning of relief against the Cincinnati Reds. In 2003, Seo spent the entire season with the Mets as a starting pitcher. He logged 188 innings pitched and 31 games started, both tops among rookie pitchers in the National League that year. In 2004, Seo struggled, splitting his time between the Mets and the AAA Norfolk Tides.
When he first pitched in the major leagues, he had two pitches - a fastball which tops out at 91-92 miles per hour (he threw in the mid-90s before Tommy John surgery), and a deceptive changeup in the mid 80s. Not being able to throw as hard as earlier in his career meant it was important for Seo to maintain a high degree of control over his pitches which, on occasion he was unable to do. This, along with Seo's reluctance to change his pitching mechanics, led to confrontations with Mets' pitching coach Rick Peterson.
However, in 2005, Seo finally seemed to have taken heed of this advice, developing a slider, splitter and curveball. The Mets' surplus of pitchers resulted in his spending much of the year at Norfolk. However, he was called up to the majors in early August 2005, and pitched extremely well.
On January 4, 2006, Seo was dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers along with Tim Hamulack in exchange for relievers Duaner Sanchez and Steve Schmoll. On June 26, he was traded by the Dodgers, along with catcher Dioner Navarro and outfielder Justin Ruggiano to the Devil Rays in exchange for pitcher Mark Hendrickson and catcher Toby Hall. Seo made his debut with the Rays on June 28, 2006 against the Florida Marlins, pitching two scoreless innings.
In 2007, despite his strong performance during Spring Training, he recorded 3-4 with 8.13. He was then sent to the Triple-A team Durham Bulls and had a solid season of 9-4 with 3.69 ERA. However, he did not make it into the extended roster of Tampa Bay.
On December 11, 2007, Seo signed with the Kia Tigers of the Korean Baseball League.
[edit] International Play
Seo was selected and played for the Korean national team in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. He pitched extremely well, having tied with the second lowest ERA in the tournament with the Dominican Republic's Bartolo Colon, with a 0.64 ERA. In the semi final game against Japan, in 6 innings Seo did not allow a single run, though Japan would eventually win the game after a miserable 7th inning, allowing 5 runs, Seo is still recognized for having one of the best pitching performances in the WBC.
[edit] Personal life
Seo is married and resides in La Cañada Flintridge, California. His daughter Ellen was born in July 2005.
[edit] See also
- List of Korean Americans
- List of players from South Korea in Major League Baseball
- Major League Baseball rosters
- Tampa Bay Devil Rays all-time roster
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
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